Human Resources Management Commons^™

The Difference In The Social Styles Of Career And Volunteer Fire Chiefs, Jimmy Rumsey

Human Resource Development Theses and Dissertations

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The purpose of this study was to determine whether a difference exists in the Social Style of a career fire chief (paid) and a volunteer fire chief. This study evaluated the Social Style of 211 fire chiefs in the State of Texas, to determine whether a difference existed between the Social Style of volunteer fire chiefs and the Social Style of career (paid) fire chiefs. Fire chiefs were surveyed and their Social Style determined by use of Wilson Learning Corporation's Social Style Profile Social Impression Survey. The results were then cross-tabulated with the respondents' status as a career fire chief …

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Examining The Influence Of Shared Leadership And Political Skill On The Relationship Between Project Management Complexity And Project Team Effectiveness In Organizations, Cathy Cockrell

Human Resource Development Theses and Dissertations

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Organizations are experiencing increasing complexity due to global competition, technological advances, and dynamic political and environmental circumstances. Therefore, organizations are driven to find new ways to stay competitive, including the increased use of project teams and the formulation of new types of project team leadership structures to manage complex and innovative work. The aim of this study was to examine shared leadership and political skill in project teams within the context of project management complexity, and the influence of these factors on project team effectiveness. A quantitative cross-sectional survey design was used as the approach for data collection. A pilot …

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Exploring A Sociomaterial Perspective On Technology In Virtual Human Resource Development, Mary Helen Fagan

Management Faculty Publications and Presentations

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The Problem

Technology is creating immersive digital ecosystems that will radically transform the way humans communicate, collaborate, and create. Virtual human resource development (VHRD) is an example of this phenomenon in the field of HRD. With the emergence of VHRD, HRD scholars need to develop more robust conceptualizations of technology, and HRD practitioners need to play a larger role in technology development. Enhanced theoretical perspectives on technology are needed to support these endeavors.

The Solution

A sociomaterial perspective on technology, which is being used for the study and development of phenomena such as virtual worlds in other disciplines, can help …

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Exploring Generational Differences Between Generation Y And Baby Boomers In Work-Life Balance, Afton Barber

Human Resource Development Theses and Dissertations

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With the recent addition of Generation Y to the workforce, workplace dynamics are changing to reflect a labor force which now encompasses the four extant commonly working generations. This study seeks to identify generational differences found between two of the generations in the current workforce, Baby Boomers and Generation Y, by isolating a specific work value, work-life balance, as promoted through managerial practices. Limited research has examined the links among the topics of generational differences, work-life balance, and managerial practices. Therefore, this study will attempt to explore the relationships among the three topics.

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Testing The Relationships Among Transformational Factors In A Postsecondary Environment, Gayle B. Wooten

Human Resource Development Theses and Dissertations

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The external environment is forcing many higher education institutions into transformational change. However, institutional change remains elusive and little research exists that explains how organizational change has been implemented in higher education. This study employed structural equation modeling to test the transformational factors in the Burke-Litwin Organizational Performance and Change model (1992) in a statewide technical college system. Results suggest the extraordinary influence of the external environment in the host organization permeates the culture and mission and strategy, weakening the role of leadership in the organization. The findings support the need for future research in the unique role of transformational …

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Exploring Different Operationalizations Of Employee Engagement And Their Relationships With Workplace Stress And Burnout Among It Professionals In Community Hospitals, Paula E. Anthony-Mcmann

Human Resource Development Theses and Dissertations

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This study suggested that the relationships between workplace stress, burnout and employee engagement depend on how the construct of employee engagement is actually measured. The study's hypotheses predicted negative relationships between employee engagement and workplace stress and further predicted that burnout would play a mediating role in those negative relationships. However, it was predicted that even similarly conceptualized measures of employee engagement would expose different relationships with these variables suggesting that the selection of employee engagement measurement instruments is vital both to understanding different aspects of the construct and to its operationalization in practice. Responding to a resurgence in scholarly …

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